A Dark Sense of Humor
by CryInSorrow
Summary: Kaden is visited by a clown on his way home from school, but this particular clown happens to know his father, somehow... JayDick/Self-Prompt/Part of the "Arkham's Red Hood" series AU. - Sequel to "More Than Love"
1. Coming for a Visit

**A Dark Sense of Humor  
**

Jason sighed deeply as he flopped down on the couch and turned on the television. Dick headed out early that morning after he and Jason had gotten Kaden ready for school. He had started second grade at Gotham Academy today, for which he was rather excited. It was amusing, because, growing up, Jason always hated school. Not that he went for very long, having been forced to drop out when he was eight to take care of his drug-addicted mother.

He flipped through the channels, not finding much of interest, so he settled on a football game. Isn't that was most men his age were always so psyched about? Well, honestly, he didn't really see the appeal. Although it was amusing to see a bunch of grown men slam into each other. And the occasional injury managed to get a laugh out of him.

Bored with that, he flipped through a few more channels until something _finally_ piqued his interest; UFC. Now _this_ was something he could get into! He sat up on the couch as he watched the current fight, a capoeira fighter versus a kickboxer.

"C'mon, go, go go! That's it! Get him!" Jason shouted at the television screen, really getting into the match. He was practically up off of the couch when the capoeira expert landed a series of dance-like moves for the knock out.

"Yes!" he shouted, raising his hands in the air. He grinned to himself and sat back down on the couch. _Fuck yeah, just found myself a new hobby!_ Jason glanced toward the door when he heard the doorknob rattling and minutes later, his seven-year-old son came through. He quirked an eyebrow, then glanced at the clock; 3 pm. _Wow, time flies..._

Kaden came through the door with an animal balloon, a dog, in hand.

"Hey champ, how was school?" Jason asked. Kaden smiled and dropped his backpack down beside the couch.

"It was okay," the boy replied. Jason quirked an eyebrow at the balloon and gestured toward it.

"What's with the balloon?" he asked. Kaden smiled up at his father as he tired it to a hook beside the window.

"A clown gave it to me. He was really nice."

"A clown huh? Where'd you meet him?"

"On my way home. He wanted me to tell you he said hi, and that he's going to come visit soon." Jason suddenly froze in the spot. The clown was going to come visit soon? _Oh no. No, no, no..._ Jason was up off of the couch and grabbed Kaden by his arms, kneeling down in front of him, a look of panic on his face.

"Kaden, did the clown say what his name was?" he asked. Kaden frowned.

"He said you'd ask me that. He said to tell you he's called the Joker." Jason's face contorted in terror as he stared blankly into his son's face. _No, no, no! He's targeting my son now?!_

"Dad, what's wrong?" the boy asked. Shaken from his thoughts, Jason shook the boy a little.

"Listen to me Kaden, that man is _very_ dangerous! Do you understand?"

"But-"

"No, Kaden, _listen_ to me! If you see him again, you run. You run as fast as you can, and you call me, or Dickie, or Bruce, do you understand?!" Jason asked. When the boy didn't answer right away, he shook him a bit.

"Do you understand me?!"

"Yes," he whimpered, tears forming in his eyes at seeing his father so angry at him. Jason felt a pang of guilt in him and crushed the boy to his chest.

"I'm sorry, I'm so sorry. I'm sorry," he kept murmuring into the boy's hair, hugging him as tight as he dared. Kaden hugged his father as he cried into his father's shoulder. Jason just held him, rocking him back and forth a little.

"Daddy's sorry. Sssh, he was just scared. I'm sorry," he whispered to the boy, kissing the top of his head. Truthfully, he was terrified. The Joker was targeting the most vulnerable member of their family, a child with no fighting skill whatsoever. He was beginning to wonder if maybe he _should_ have taken Damian's advice and started training him.

"Why don't you go play with your toys, okay?" Jason suggested with a smile, patting the boy on his head. Kaden dried his eyes and gave a little nod, retreating to his bedroom. Once Kaden was out of sight, he rushed for the phone and grabbed it up. He tried to punch in Dick's phone number, but his hands were shaking so bad, he kept missing the numbers.

"God dammit!" He shouted, throwing the phone across the room. It crashed against the wall and shattered and Kaden came running out of his room, terrified.

"Daddy?!" he shouted, fear clear in his voice. Jason cursed mentally, feeling terrible for scaring the boy like that. _Shit, shit, shit, get a hold of yourself Jason. Calm down..._

"Sorry, daddy's fine. Go play," Jason called to him. Kaden stood there watching his father for a few moments before he retreated to his room again. Jason raked his hands through his hair and started pacing back and forth. Then he moved into his bedroom and grabbed the bedroom phone. He was still shaking pretty badly when he began dialing the number, slowly. When it rang, he took a few deep breaths.

"Jaybird? I'm on duty, can't this wait?" came Dick's voice. Jason breathed a sigh of relief.

"No, it can't. Dick, you need to get home, _now_ ," Jason said. Dick didn't miss the tone of Jason's voice and he was quickly taken over by concern.

"Jason, what's wrong?" Dick asked in a low tone.

"Just get home!" Jason shouted into the phone, and shutting it off. It was unfair of him to yell at Dick like that, but he was so terrified he wasn't thinking straight. He sat on the bed, on the verge of a panic attack. Had the Joker just come after him directly, he could have handled that. But targeting his son? Fear, he found, was slowly being replaced with rage. But he had to keep calm, now was not the time to lose his head.

Jason heard the door knob rattling and he bolted off of the bed and rushed to the door just in time to see Dick coming through, still in uniform. He immediately threw his arms around his husband and hugged him tight.

"J-Jason? What's going on?" Dick asked, gently pushing the man off of him. He looked down and saw Jason's hands shaking, then looked back up into the man's eyes, concern clearly etched on his face. He cupped the his jaw with his hand, thumb idly stroking over his cheek.

"Jason, you're shaking like a leaf. What the hell happened?" Dick asked softly. Jason swallowed hard and then glanced toward Kaden's room. He looked bacl toward Dick and sighed deeply.

"The Joker went after Kaden today."

"WHAT?! Is he alright?!" Dick near shouted, attempting to race over to the boy's room, but Jason stopped him with a hand on his shoulder.

"Kaden is fine. He came home with an animal balloon and a message. He said the Joker said he was 'going to visit soon'." Jason said. Dick looked at Jason with a fear-stricken expression, pretty much the same look he had on when Kaden came home.

"W-what do we do? Dick, we have to protect Kaden, but I...what...what the _fuck_ do we do?!" Jason asked desperately, looking to be on the verge of breaking down. Dick collected the man in his arms and hugged him as tight as he dared.

"We'll go to the manor immediately. Okay? You need to calm down, and stay cool. Any stupid thoughts you have brewing in that brain of yours, _ignore_ them. Focus only on Kaden, okay? Kaden and me. Can you do that?" Dick asked him, framing the man's face in his hands. Jason took a few deep breaths and nodded. Dick's heart wrenched to see his husband like this; this wasn't Jason. Jason got angry, he took charge, he went looking for solutions. But given that this was the man's _child..._ he fully understood the fear and panic he could feel radiating off the man right now.

"Kaden, come on buddy, we're going to stay with Grandpa for a little while, okay?" Jason called. Kaden came out of his room minutes later with a smile on his face. He loved visiting with Bruce and Damian.

"Okay!" Jason smiled down at the boy and he and Dick led him out to the car. Dick took the keys from Jason's hands who didn't protest; he knew he was in no shape to drive right now.

Kaden hopped in the back seat and Dick and Jason in the driver's and passenger's seat and pulled away from the apartment building, heading straight for the manor. Jason was looking out the window almost lifelessly and Dick felt a pang of sorrow to see the man like that. With one hand, he gently laid it on top of one of Jason's, thumb brushing over the skin. Jason looked at the man and flashed a weak smile.

 _It's going to be okay_ he read in Dick's eyes. He wanted to believe that, but this was the Joker. The man who tortured him for _four_ , almost _five_ months. And now his child was in danger by the deranged clown. But right now, the one, singular thought that swam in his head, that pushed aside all else and dominated his thoughts was _if he touches my son, I will_ fucking kill him.


	2. Protection

**Chapter 2**

The drive to the manor was unusually quiet. Nobody spoke a word not even Kaden, though Dick occasionally looked over at Jason to see if he was alright, but he still had that same, helpless look on his face. He got it; Jason had never been in a position before where he felt helpless, had never had anyone who depended on him like Kaden did. So when danger came knocking, and targeted Kaden, he wasn't sure what to do.

Dick, Jason and Kaden finally arrived at the manor, having only a few bags but Bruce was more than accommodating and let them have their own rooms and one for Kaden. He didn't ask any questions, and Dick and Jason didn't want to discuss the matter in front of their son.

"Kaden, why don't you go play with your toys," Dick said with a smile, patting the boy on the head. Kaden smiled and hugged his papa (currently, it was Dickie, papa, or da) before making off for his bedroom here in the manor. Once he was out of earshot, Jason and Dick turned to Bruce.

"It's the Joker. He went after Kaden today," Jason said in a surprisingly calm tone. Bruce and Dick both looked disturbed by that; it likely meant he was either _really_ pissed, or getting there. Bruce patted him on the back and gave a nod.

"You can stay here as long as you need. We'll figure this out," Bruce said smoothly, trying to calm the man. Jason crossed his arms over his chest, looking unconvinced bu he nodded nonetheless. That seemed to concern Dick and Bruce a bit because honestly, given Jason's history-

"I won't go out an kill anyone, okay? You guys can relax," Jason said in a rather annoyed tone, heading off up to his old room. He grumbled under his breath when he was out of ear shot "at least not yet anyway." Dick turned back to Bruce and raked a hand through his hair.

"Thanks for letting us stay for a while. Jason was terrified when Kaden came home," Dick said with a sigh. Bruce gave a nod and patted him on the back.

"Of course, I understand. Given what he went through at the Joker's hands, I can't say that I blame him," Bruce answered with a shrug. Dick couldn't help but to agree with that. They went through four, almost fives months of living hell when the Joker had kidnapped Jason. They were _not_ going to let that happen to Kaden.

Dick raked his hands through his hair as he headed up to Jason's room, more than content to share a room with him. He passed Damian on his way up who was reading a book on his way down. Damian had grown up a lot and at seventeen, he looked almost _exactly_ like a young Bruce Wayne. The resemblance was uncanny.

"Hey Little D," Dick said with a grin, ruffling the teen's hair. Damian huffed in annoyance and shoved Dick's arm away without looking up from his book.

"Dick, I'm seventeen! Are you ever going to stop calling me that?" Damian asked. Dick chuckled in amusement and pulled the teen into a light embrace.

"God no, you'll always be my Little D" Dick replied with a cheesy grin plastered on his face.

"God you're embarrassing. And annoying," Damian muttered, pushing his way out of Dick's grasp. Damian stared at him for a moment longer, giving one of his signature glares before making his way downstairs. Dick just watched the boy go with an amused look; he'd calmed down a lot since he'd come to the manor. It was true, he could still be a little bit of an ass, but on the whole, he was much more...relaxed?

Dick sighed and pushed open Jason's door to find a man he didn't really recognize. Or, actually, hold that thought. He looked very much like the man who held his infant son seven years ago after that kidnapping incident. Jason lay on his bed, on his side, the only light in the room coming from the window. Dick sighed and slid into bed beside him, wrapping an arm around his waist.

"Are you okay?" Dick asked softly, placing a kiss to the back of the man's neck. Jason sighed and leaned back against Dick.

"No. For the first time in a long time, I'm at a loss. I don't know what to do. I mean, I know what I _want_ to do," Jason began, expression darkening as he said "I want to hunt down the Joker and planet a bullet between his eyes, like someone should have years ago."

Dick sighed and let his hand wander up Jason's shirt, just enough to brush against the soft skin of his belly.

"Are we really going back there again, Jay?" he asked, trying to hide the annoyance in his voice. Frankly, he thought they;d moved past that, thought Jason had finally given up killing. But it seemed not. Jason growled and pulled away from the man, sitting up on the bed. He glanced over his shoulder, shooting the man a glare.

"I never left," he shot, moving toward the window. He clenched his fists, the sudden, overwhelming desire to hit something overtaking him. Anger and rage started boiling in him again as the conversation with his son, back at the apartment, played out again. The Joker, targeting his child...at first it made his blood freeze in his veins. But then his blood started to boil. How _dare_ that clown even _look_ at Kaden!

"You wanna know the truth, Dick?" Jason asked without turning "not a day has passed where I haven't thought about blowing that sadistic fuck away." He turned, anger having twisted his features, his voice rising in anger.

"And the more I think about it, and after what happened today, I think I _should_ have! He's killed women, children, he doesn't care who! And now hes targeting my son!" Jason shouted angrily. He grabbed the alarm clock up off the nightstand and threw it against the wall, shattering it, the pieces falling right to the floor.

"Jason! Calm down!" Dick shouted, jumping to his feet. Jason turned on the spot and glared at Dick.

"Calm down?! _Calm down?!_ You're telling me I'm wrong to thinking about killing the man who tortured me for five months, and is now threatening my son?! And you want me to _calm the fuck down?!"_ Dick suddenly felt somewhat guilty here, since he kind of pushed the button that set him off, but he didn't let that show.

"Yes! Calm down! D'you remember what happened to Kaden every time you got pissed like this?!" That seemed to strike a nerve, because Jason instantly calmed down, anger evaporating. Yeah, he remembered, how could he not? Just early this afternoon, Kaden came out of his room, looking downright scared.

Dick moved across the room, closing the space between them in an instant and hugged him as tight as he dared. Jason just relaxed into the embrace, returning the gesture hesitantly.

"I know you're angry, but I also know you're scared, but you _have_ to stay calm. For Kaden's sake. You know none of us, me, Bruce, Tim, hell, even Damian, are going to let _anything_ happen to Kaden." Jason sighed deeply and pushed away from the man, raking his hands through his hair.

"Yeah, I know," he said flatly. Dick huffed in annoyance, feeling like nothing he was doing was getting through to the man.

"Can you just go? I need to be alone for a little while," Jason said. Dick gave a nod and retreated from the room. Jason waited until he was sure the man was gone and then dug through his back; he'd stashed some of his Red Hood gear in it when Dick wasn't looking, including the black cell phone. He dug it out of the bag and started dialing a number.

"Blackjack. Spread the word; if anyone sees the Joker, kill on sight. Understood? Good. Send the word out, I want that clown's head on a pike." Jason closed the phone shut and stashed it in the pocket on his hoodie as he began formulating a plan. The Joker's threat would end one way or another. He'd made the mistake of letting the clown live in the past and even to this day, he still felt a twinge of anger at Bruce for sparring him. But the Joker was threatening his son, now. _That_ was not going to go unpunished.

* * *

Night came and with it, patrol. Everyone was out that night, looking for the Joker: Batman, Robin, Red Robin, Red Hood and Nightwing. They had threatened little Kaden, a member of their family, a son, a nephew, a grandson and a half-brother (they'd finally gotten Damian to accept the idea, but not Jason).

"Remember, if you find the Joker, contact the rest of us. _Do not engage alone._ Understood?" Batman said over the comm link.

"Yeah, sure, but aren't you a little old for this crap? I mean, c'mon, you're 50. Gotta retire sometime," Red Hood joked.

"Someday, but not tonight. Not while my grandson is in danger," Batman replied. It was in that moment that the Red Hood got a transmission from his own men, something he'd been keeping a secret from the others for one simple reason; he'd planned to end it all, tonight.

"Sir, the Joker's gang has us pinned down at Sheal Docklands!" came Blackjack's voice. Red Hood growled darkly, turning his comm link off so no one could over hear him. Once he did that, however, he knew he'd have to be quick, because it'd only be a matter of time before the rest of them figured what he was up to.

"Alright, I'm on my way," Red Hood replied, whipping out a grappling hook and swinging down to his motorcycle below. With a rev of the engine he took off toward Sheal Docklands. _This time, I'm ending it, once and for all._

"Red, come in. Hood. Red Hood. Jason!" shouted Oracle over the comm link, but getting no reply. That made the others nervous, but none more so than Nightwing.

"God dammit! He's going after the Joker alone!" Nightwing shouted over the comm link. He felt his own anger rising because he couldn't _believe_ the man would be so damned stupid! No, no he definitely could, but...dammit!

"We have to stop him!"

"I can't track him, he's shut off his tracker," Oracle replied, clacking away at the keyboard to find something, anything. Batman growled and began typing commands onto his gauntlet, summoning the batmobile.

"Do we have any idea where the Joker is yet?" Batman asked. Silence emanated over the link, save for the clacking of keys. Damian growled over the comm link this time.

"Hurry up! We have to stop Todd before that dumbass does something stupid. Seems like a recurring theme lately, saving Todd from his own stupidity."

"The Joker had been spotted at Sheal Docklands! He's engaging the Red Hood's men!" Oracle replied.

"Then we have our destination! Let's go!" Batman called over the link. Nightwing summoned his Wing Glider, jumping off from the top of the building and grabbing a hold of it, flying off into the night and following the batmobile below.


	3. The Fool's Apprentice

**The Fool's Apprentice  
**

The Red Hood arrived on the scene, which looked like a warzone. His men and the Joker's were trading gunfire down at the docks, though Joker's men had one advantage: Joker toxin. They had gas grenades full of the stuff and were more than willing to use it. Fortunately for Hood, his men had a decent enough supply of antitoxin.

It still looked like a brutal fight though. Unfortunately, the Joker was nowhere in sight. However, Harley Quinn was there, swinging her bat and firing off a grenade launcher to boot. It didn't take him king to figure out the Joker's game; he was _trying_ to get his attention. And it had worked.

"Blackjack!" Red Hood called, moving toward the man where he was hiding behind a shipping crate. He clapped the man ion the back who happily returned the gesture, seemingly glad to see him.

"Damn good to have you here boss! When you gave the order to kill the Joker, the clown showed up like magic, but he brought his lackies with him! They got us pinned in here pretty good, especially those two!" Blackjack explained pointing to Hammer and Sickle. Red Hood scowled and drew his guns.

"I'll handle them, you just give me cover fire," Red Hood said to Blackjack. The man gave a nod and issued to the order to his men. Red Hood rushed Sickle first, the most dangerous of the two. Sickle turned in time to see Red Hood coming at him and swung the blade at him.

"Boss said he wants you! He didn't say dead or alive!" Sickle growled. Hood avoided the attack and showered the man in electric bullets. He briefly wished he had live ammo because Sickle barely seemed phased by his attacks.

"Hey Hammer, get over here! Little Red Riding Hood's come pout to play!" Sickle called. Red Hood snorted and dodged another attack from Sickle. And that's when the Joker made his presence known.

"Yoohoo! Mister Hood! If I could have a moment of your time!" The Joker called. Sickle looked toward the Joker and immediately stopped his attack; that told Hood that the Joker, indeed, wanted him alive. Unfortunately for the Joker, Hood wanted _him_ dead.

"Hey, Hood," called Blackjack, throwing him some live ammo. Hood caught it and grinned like the devil beneath his mask. He turned to the Joker and ran after him.

"You're dead clown! I'm going to finish what I started thirteen years ago!"

* * *

Nightwing, Batman, Robin and Red Robin arrived at the scene to find Joker and Red Hood's men tearing each other apart with Harley leading them. No sign of the Joker. But no sign of the Red Hood either. That wasn't good at for the moment, they had to deal with this...gang war, before it got any worse.

"Red Robin, Robin, come with me! We're going after Joker's men!" Batman called, setting his sights on Sickle and Hammer. Nightwing moved toward the man he recognized as "Blackjack" and stopped before him.

"Great, you here to arrest me? It beats getting killed by a fuckin' clown I suppose," the man growled, glaring at Nightwing. Nightwing shook his head.

"No, listen. This once, you're getting a free pass. In exchanged for your help," Nightwing offered, extending his hand. Blackjack looked at him as if he had three heads.

"What?!" he asked incredulously.

"Look, I think we can both agree that The Joker and his men are too dangerous to be allowed to stay on the loose. You and your men help us, and I can convince Batman to let you go, just this once. Understood?" Blackjack eyes him silently for a few moments, then gave a nod.

"Yeah, fine. Working with the Batman sounds better than letting these nuts run lose. Alright men, listen up-" Blackjack called, turning to his men. Nightwing jumped up on top of a shipping crate to get a better look and see if he could spot either Red Hood or the Joker, but they were nowhere in sight.

"Dammit Jason," he muttered to himself. He glanced down to Blackjack who'd just finished explaining the situation to his men.

"Hey, did you see where Red Hood and the Joker went?" he called down to him. Blackjack gave a nod and pointed east. Nightwing looked in that direction and knew where they were going: Ace Chemicals.

"Word of advice, kid, whatever Batman taught ya, ignore it this once. Let the boss kill the Joker. The world would be better off with that psychopath." Nightwing didn't answer, instead opted for action and summoned his Wing Glider, jumping on and heading off toward Ace Chemicals.

"Nightwing!" Robin called, watching the man go. He turned his attention back to Joker's thugs; Sickle had been taken down, but Hammer was still causing a it of chaos. And then, there was Harley, raining grenades down everywhere. Robin growled as he shot a glare at her and moved to intercept.

"Well, well, well, if it ain't the forth birdboy! Mistah Jay has a special place for you! Six feet undah!" Harley called with a cackling laugh.

* * *

Hood followed the Joker into Ace Chemicals, but when he entered the build, he couldn't find the man anywhere. He drew both his guns and armed them with live ammo, then slowly crept around the place, looking for the sadistic clown.

"Ah, memories! This is where it all began, and quite frankly, it was quite liberating!" came the Joker's voice. Hood snorted angrily, rounding a corner, weapons at the ready.

"What? Becoming a psychopathic freak?" He shot. The Joker laughed at the comment.

"Losing my sanity! Sanity is such a weighty thing! It keeps you from seeing the world for what it is! The rest of you mundane people walk around with rose tinted glasses your whole lives, but I see things as they are!" The Joker replied. Hood felt a feeling of apprehensiveness rising in him; this didn't sound like the Joker he knew.

"Or maybe you're just batshit insane," he shot back. The Joker laughed like a hyena, the sound echoing around the room.

" _Bat_ shit! That's a good one! And here I thought you didn't have a sense of humor!" Hood flinched and spun on the spot, catching a glimpse of a shadow moving out of the corner of his eye.

"But you know, growing older has a way of making even the insane gain a bit of clarity," the Joker said then, his tone serious and very _un_ Joker.

"You see, when I die, there will be no one left to spread my special brand of chaos!"

"Good. The world doesn't need you, per se. Maybe in a box, six feet under. Or under the wheels of a bus," Hood retorted, firing a shot above as he saw the clown move on one of the catwalks above him. Hood followed hi, making his way up, the the Joker had disappeared again.

"Oh, but that's the beauty of it! I found a way to create a new me!" The cackling laughter echoed around the room again and Hood shuddered, blood running cold at the thought of another Joker.

"I've discovered the chemical mixture that created me, and I've already chosen the perfect candidate to replace me!" Hood tore off his mask, terror on his face. In that moment, Jason realized _just_ how much danger his son was really in.

"You stay the _fuck_ away from him! Do you hear me?! You so much as _look_ at him again, and I will beat your fucking brains out all over the concrete! I'll make you fucking beg for death! DO YOU HEAR ME?!" He shouted, rage boiling over.

"Loud and clear!" came he Joker's voice from behind him. Jason spun around as a crowbar came flying at him.

* * *

Nightwing arrived at Ace Chemicals just in time, it seemed. Hood and Joker were tearing the place up. The Joker was cackling like a maniac as he threw Joker Toxin grenades and Hood was most definitely trying to kill him; he was using _live_ ammo. Nightwing dropped down through the roof and the first thing he noticed was blood on the floor, meaning someone had been hit and it had to have been The Joker.

"Well, I'd love to stay and play, but there's so much to do!" the Joker called with a cackle, throwing a handful of gas grenades.

"You're not fuckin' going anywhere!" Jason shouted angrily, chasing after the clown, but as he drew nearer, one of the vats exploded, spilling chemicals everywhere.

"Jay!" Nightwing shouted, using a grappling hook to yank him out of the path of the spilling chemicals. Jason yelped in surprise as he was yanked backward, then shouted angrily as he tried to free himself.

"Let me go! I need to end this!" Jason shouted. Dick tore off his mask and wrapped his arms around Jason from behind, but that didn't calm the man any.

"Dick, let me go! He's getting away!" Angry, Dick spun the man around and shook him, staring right into his eyes.

"Are you fucking stupid?! I just saved your ass from drowning in toxic chemicals! You were so blinded by rage you almost ran right into the shit! You need to _calm the fuck down_!" Dick seethed. Jason stared into Dick's eyes, his anger subsiding somewhat. He shoved Dick away from him then and stormed across the room, raking his hands through his hair.

"God dammit Dick! He needs to fucking die!"

"We don't kill-"

"That was before he threatened to turn our son into the next Joker!" That shut Dick up quick as a look of terror spread across his face. Jason moved toward Dick, grabbing him by his arms and shaking him.

"Don't you get it?! As long as that psycho lives, Kaden will be in danger! What would you have us do? Hide him away in the manor until he dies?!" Jason asked angrily. Dick didn't have an answer, he didn't know what to say _at all._

"Jay"

"I know you're not a killer, Dick, but I am, and-"

"Now's not the time," Dick said sharply, interrupting him and storming out of the building. This new information was startling to say the least, but he was right; now was definitely not the time.


	4. The Last Laugh

**The Last Laugh**

Dick, Tim, Damian and Bruce all arrive back at the manor before Jason. Jason had said something about dealing with his men after the attack by the Joker. None of them were overly concerned; even in his anger, they knew Jason was rational enough to realize that going after the Joker now without having a clue as to where he was would be foolish.

But when he did finally get back, he looked livid. He headed for the stairs without a word to anyone else, but Dick blocked his path. Jason glared at him and Dick glared back.

"Dick, get out of my way," Jason warned. Dick didn't budge and instead, met his husband's anger head on.

"No. Jason, you can't see him right now. Not like this," Dick said evenly. Jason looked like he was going to punch something, or someone, but Dick knew he was doing the right thing; Kaden _didn't_ need to see his father like this.

"Dick, he's my son, now get out of the damn way," he growled, trying to shove past him, but Dick shoved him back.

"I said no. Jason, look at yourself! Your anger is out of control! Is that what Kaden needs to see?!" Dick hissed. Jason growled and jabbed Dick in the chest with his finger.

"I need to see him! I need to know he's okay! He's _my son_ god dammit!" Jason growled, trying again to push past him. Bruce was at Dick's side moments later, and then Damian and lastly, Tim.

"You need to cool off. Kaden is fine, but we're not going to let you near him while you're like this." Jason flinched, glaring at all of them like they'd each just slapped him.

"Oh, so this is how it's going to be, huh?"

"It's not like that, Jay, and you know it," Dick countered, knowing exactly what the man was thinking. In his anger, his rage, he wasn't thinking clearly, but Dick knew what he was thinking; that his family was throwing him under the bus again.

"Isn't it?! You won't even let me see my own damn kid!" He growled angrily.

"Because you're a fucking mess, Jay! You need to take time to-"

"No, you know what?! I'm entitled to be pissed, to be afraid for Kaden, so fuck you. Fuck all of you," Jason growled darkly, storming out of the manor. Dick sighed and pinched the bridge of his nose, suddenly feeling lower than dirt. He knew he did the right thing, but he felt like a complete ass.

"You did the right thing, Dick. Kaden didn't need to see his father like that," Bruce comforted, patting him on the back. Dick just shook his head.

"I know. Still feel like shit though,m" he replied.

"C'mon, let's just get some rest and figure things out in the morning," Tim offered. Dick gave a nod and allowed himself to be dragged up the stairs by both Damian and Tim. It was nice to see those two getting along, at last. As for hi, he felt drained, and not just physically, but emotionally as well.

Eventually, Dick came to his old bedroom and bid his brothers good night, slipping out of his clothing and hitting the bed like a rock, pulling the covers up over himself. Despite his exhaustion, his thoughts were still on Jason; the man looked so hurt when they refused to let him see Kaden. He got it, he really did, because he loved Kaden as much as Jason did.

But his mind started to lull as sleep started to take hold of him and eventually, his eyes fell closed and sleep embraced him.

Sometime later, he wasn't sure how long, given how tired he was, he became aware of someone else in the room. Then he felt the bed move, and then he felt someone pressing up against his back, and an arm drape over his waist. Then he felt a kiss on the back of his neck and heard the muttered words 'I'm sorry'. He knew it was Jason and he would have responded, but his mind and body were just so relaxed, so tired, he didn't have the energy, but he did settle back against the form behind him, let himself be embraced, held, and all felt right in the world.

* * *

Dick woke early the next morning to find Jason beside him, holding him, pressed up against him. He had half expected the man not to come back until later in the day, but he smiled nevertheless, glad the man was here. He sighed contentedly, not having the heart to wake him after the events of last night and just lay there in Jason's arms, content and happy. This would all be perfect, except for the circumstances surrounding this perfect moment.

"I'm sorry," he heard behind him. Dick rolled over to look into Jason's eyes, eyes they held fear, regret, anger, so many different, conflicting emotions. The smile fell of his face, but he leaned forward and pressed a kiss to the man's lips, holding the contact for several moments. Wordlessly, the two of them slid out of bed and made their way downstairs.

"Master Dick, Master Jason," Alfred greeted with a polite bow. Dick and Jason inclined their heads as they made their way into the dining room.

"Where's Kaden?" Jason asked Bruce who was sitting there eating breakfast quietly. The man looked up at him but didn't say a word. That made Jason nervous and somewhat angry.

"Bruce, where is my son?" Jason asked again in a barely restrained tone.

"Tim took him to school," but before Bruce could finish that sentence, Jason jumped up from his seat and slammed his hands on the table. He couldn't get a word out before Dick pulled him back down.

"Calm down Jason. You know Tim would never let anything happen to Kaden," Dick assured him. Bruce finished his meal, pushing the plate aside and looking directly into Jason's eyes.

"Tim is going to shadow Kaden _all_ day. If the Joker makes a move, we'll know about it and we'll be able to respond immediately."

"So you're using my kid as bait then?!" Jason snapped angrily.

"No, because Damian went too," Bruce answered. That seemed to calm Jason down a bit. Damian was as well trained as any of them and having both Tim and Damian shadowing Kaden seemed to make him feel better. But Bruce seemed...disturbed.

"I told Damian to do what was necessary to protect Kaden," Bruce said grimly. Dick and Jason exchanged glances, knowing what the man was talking about.

"Even-"

"Yes. Damian was trained as an assassin. If anyone can come back from making a kill, it's him. You don't need to tell me about all the things that are wrong with what I've done, believe me, I tore myself apart over it while I was discussing it with Damian," Bruce said in a low tone. He looked up at Jason, glancing back and forth between him and Dick.

"I don't like it, but Damian has at least agreed to use it as a last resort."

"You should have just let me do it thirteen years ago," Jason growled lowly. Bruce didn't show any indication of wanting to disagree with him, but nobody brought it up. Jason sighed an slumped down in his chair.

"I don't like it," he said in a low tone. Dick patted his back and pressed a kiss to his jaw.

"I know, but he's perfectly safe."

"I know."

* * *

Tim and Damian had followed Kaden around all day, from a distance, utilizing their stealth training to the fullest extent. They kept their eyes peeled for any sign of the Joker and were ready to act at a moment's notice.

"I told those idiots to train him, but no, what do I know," Damian grumbled under his breath. Tim snickered beside him, patting him on the back as the two of them sat perched in a tree outside the boy's classroom.

"Well, if it makes you feel any better, they're likely to take you up on that now," Tim offered. Damian snorted in reply. For the whole day, the two of them tailed him until school let out and the little boy made his way to the school bus. This was the part they were most worried about; Kaden getting lost in the crowd of children. What happened next, took them completely by surprise.

Coming off one of the buses, were a bunch of Joker's thugs, Harley included and-

"The Joker!" Damian shouted, pointing down at the sadistic clown below, moving toward Kaden. The children were frighting and the Joker's thugs began beating the teachers down and shoving children out of the way.

"We gotta move no-" but Damian had already sprung into action before Tim could finish. They were both dressed in their vigilante gear, just in case, and Damian was already rushing onto the scene. Tim's heart skipped a beat when the clown grabbed KAden as he too, raced down to stop it.

"Oracle! This is Red Robin, alert Bruce and the others, NOW, the Joker is taking Kaden!" he shouted into the comm link.

* * *

They didn't think, they just acted. Before any of them knew it, Red Hood, Nightwing and Batman were out, hunting down the Joker. Damian had been lucky enough to plant a tracker on the bus that the Joker and Harley had stolen while his thugs held off Robin and Red Robin.

Robin had apparently taken off without Red, going after Kaden and the Joker on his own. Oracle, meanwhile, directed Red Robin after he cleaned up Joker's thugs and he followed after them, and met up with Red Hood, Nightwing and Batman halfway. Oracle had tracked Robin, Kaden and the Joker to an abandoned warehouse in, surprise surprise, The Bowery. More specifically, they tracked him to Amusement Mile.

"I swear to god, if one hair is out of place on his head, I'm blowing that clown the fuck away," Red Hood said out loud, making his intentions clear. He'd contacted his men and made them aware of the situation, or rather, what he wanted them to know; they were working with Batman this one last time to take down the Joker and his little gang once and for all. His men had already engaged Joker's thugs at all his hideouts throughout Gotham.

They arrived at Amusement Mile, following the tracker inside the fun house. Kaden came running out of the building and crashed into Nightwing. The boy looked up at him eyes fearful and full of tears.

"They got him! They got Robin!" The boy pleaded with Nightwing. Batman gently pushed Nightwing aside before he could answer end knelt down in front of the boy.

"Thank you, we'll take care of it. Why don't you go with Red Robin? He'll take you somewhere safe." He patted the boy on the head who gave a curt nod and took Red Robin's hand, allowing himself to be led away from Amusement Mile.

"I thought he was after-" Nightwing started.

"So did I," Red Hood interrupted as he, Batman and Nightwing hurried inside the building. They ran past Harley who'd been knocked out cold and the sounds of combat grew louder. The three of them stopped at the doorway to a large open, dimly lit room where Robin had been tied to a chair, cuts and scratches all over his body and the Joker standing behind him, a syringe in one hand and three knives in his other.

"Well, look whose arrived just in time to see the birth of my new apprentice!" The Joker said with a cackle.

"Let him go, Joker!" Batman growled. The Joker laughed again and as the three of them attempted to move toward him, he held a knife to Robin's throat.

"Not a single move, or I slice the little birdie open!" The Joker said darkly, a wicked grin on his face.

"The little runt was merely a means to get to this one, the son of my most hated and loved rival! How ironic that it should end this way, hmm? Ironic, and hilarious!" The Joker said with a wicked laugh.

"You're the only one whose laughing asshole," came Damian's voice. He pushed himself backward as hard as he could, still tied to the chair and sent the clown tumbling backwards. Hood, Batman and Nightwing raced forward, Batman and Nightwing grabbing Damian and Hood pulled out a gun and shot the clown in the leg. The Joker howled in pain, which quickly devolved into a demented, soulless laugh.

"Joke's on you; this is the end of the line for the Joker," Hood said smugly, pointing the gun down at the Joker's head. The clown laughed and pulled out a detonator.

"This is how it was always meant to end! All of us, together in one big explosion! KABOOM, WE ALL GO OUT TOGETHER!" He shouted, cackling insanely as LEDs lit up all over the room with only ten seconds on the clock.

"GO!" Hood shouted, throwing Damian over his shoulder as the four of them ran out of the Funhouse, the Joker's laughter echoing behind them.

"We're not going to make it out!" Nightwing shouted. Suddenly, Batman stopped in front of a concrete wall, grabbing both Nightwing and Red Hood from behind and yanking them against the wall with him. The bombs went off, and Amusement Mile went up in flames; the Funhouse went first, and then one by one, each part of Amusement Mile exploded too.

When the explosions subsided, the ruble began to move. Batman heaved a concrete block off of himself and whipped his cape behind him, revealing Hood, Nightwing and Damian laying safely on the ground, alive, but covered in dust with a few scrapes and scratches.

"Ow," Nightwing murmured.

"Told you getting blown up sucks," Hood said flatly, getting to his feet and brushing himself off. He looked down to Damian who'd managed to push himself into a sitting position.

"Fuck, Todd, you've done this three times now? How the fuck are you still intact?"

"Just lucky I guess," he said with a laugh, helping the teen up. Batman went on ahead of them, scanning the area with his x-ray vision in his cowl.

"No sign of the Joker."

"Then that fucker is still alive," Jason growled, kicking a piece of debris.

"Maybe. He was pretty badly injured, so he couldn't have gotten far," Nightwing suggested. Batman shook his head, knowing where they were going with this.

"Not now. Now, we go home and we rest. For now, the nightmare is over."

* * *

Jason hefted the little boy up into bed between himself and Dick when the kid came crying about nightmares. They'd moved back into their own apartment, but poor Kaden had been suffering nightmares for the past week.

Jason and Dick wrapped their arms around the little boy and cuddled against him to make him feel safe. Finally, he fell asleep and Jason looked into Dick's eyes with a sorrowful expression.

"He'll be okay," Dick said softly, offering him a smile. He cupped Jason's face, thumb brushing over his cheek softly.

"He's daddy's little boy, so he'll definitely be okay." Jason chuckled in amusement and pressed a kiss to the top of the sleeping boy's head.

"Yeah, it still sucks, y'know?"

"I know. I remember when we found you. The nightmares, the coping. It sucked, but we got through it, and we'll do it again."

"I think we should get a dog." Dick snorted, followed by a quiet laugh.

"Sure thing babe."


End file.
